Getting Started with an EHR

HIMSS (Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society) issued a fact sheet with the following tips on how to implement an EHR system:

1. Getting Started
• Start by forming an EHR project team
• Write a mission statement
• The EHR project can speed up patient flow and add capacity
• The EHR can also reduce overtime by spending less time filling out paper form and charts.
  
2. Examine Workflow
• Examine how implementing the EHR will change your business. For instance the EHR may speed things up but change how you run your business
  
3. Select the Right Vendor
• Make a list of requirements that you need in an EHR
• Ask people you know what kind of EHR that they use and what their experiences have been with them
• Look on the institute of Medicine and their list for a "key capabilities" for an EHR
  
4. Negotiate a Good Contract
• Negotiate a contract that meets your needs for your EHR
• Ask for references from the vendor
• View the product at a company that uses the vendor already
  
5. Plan Carefully for a Successful Implementation
• Plan how to transfer existing paper based information and how the new documents transfer into the new EHR system.
• Train one "super-user" for every 25 people that will be using the EHR system in your company.

For the full article, please click the following link: Getting Started with an EHR

For additional billing and coding resources, please click the following link: Medical Reimbursement Resources Page